An effort to raise Michigan's minimum wage turned in 610,000 petition signatures today. Supporters are hoping to get a ballot question before voters in 2024.
The update comes on the heels of a court ruling that restores the incremental minimum wage increases in a 2018 law.
That law originated from a petition campaign. The Republican-led Legislature used a process known as "adopt-and-amend" to take up the ballot proposal and then slow the wage increases.
Maricela Gutierrez co-chairs the campaign behind both initiatives. "We had been trying in 2018 to get on the ballot, then the whole thing happened with the adopt-and-amend so it really works out perfectly," she says. "People are going to see a raise starting next year and then they'll be able to build momentum in 2024 to vote themselves another raise, which is really needed."
Now, the Bureau of Elections will evaluate the signatures and recommend whether the question qualifies for the ballot.